Roberto Di Matteo, the Chelsea manager, believes the club are "a domestic
and international force" despite their failure to win the European Cup.

By Telegraph staff and agencies

4:36AM BST 04 Apr 2012

The Champions League, Europe's premier club competition, has become something of a Holy Grail for Chelsea who have reached the semi-finals five times since Roman Abramovich bought the club in 2003.

Chelsea will reach their sixth semi-final in nine seasons if they avoid defeat against Benfica at Stamford Bridge to set up a repeat of the 2009 last four encounter with reigning champions Barcelona with a potential final against Real Madrid or Bayern Munich to follow for the winners.

Di Matteo, though, remains confident and has claimed their domestic trophy haul during the Abramovich era qualified them as a force to be reckoned with in European football.

"If you look at the last decade of this club, it's become a domestic and international force," he said.

"It's been always fighting for domestic trophies and titles, and internationally.